If we can package Carp, Kelley, with perhaps two of Triunfel and/or Martinez and/or Noesi and/or Medina and/or Peguero and/or Liddi and/or Thames for something useful, even if he doesn't have 5.0 WAR right now, it would ease the crunch considerably. If Bonderman or Garland are back and need to go on the 40-man, it will no longer be pruning, it will start to be clear-cutting, unless we can get value for these marginal guys. I see even Andino being bait, depending on how Miller, Romero, and Franklin do in ST and the first month of the AAA season.
I still would like to see them try for a high-upside blocked guy, or a guy that hasn't gotten consistent playing time. We've got prospects; we could really use a good fielding outfielder who could platoon with Bay or Wells (if platooning isn't obsolete :-)) and provide .800 OPS thump from the left side - Carp has the thump, but not the skills in the field, which is sad for us. I'm partial to Domonic Brown, even if we had to overpay, because his situation seems to make him the classic change-of-scenery candidate. Stick him in the lineup at 8 or 9 against righties and watch him exceed Bill James' prediction (which is .274/.347/.445/.792 playing full time) by letting his strength play. And with his arm in right, we could have Buhner redux, at least until BigFoot Stanton is available. Then, an outfield of Brown/Morse (Brown/Wells? Brown/Bay?), Saunders, and Stanton might attract some envy.
The other thing I'm hoping for is for Raul Ibanez to see that he might be most useful if he takes the 2nd hitting coach job and provides the clubhouse presence that way. I think he's an outstanding guy who has much to contribute, but when you look at the roster, he doesn't really fit well as a backup outfielder, especially if Bay is healthy, or if they can get a LH-hitting outfielder who can really field and throw. But if Raul can help Montero learn to DH on the days Zunino catches, he could really contribute to the continued success of this club as constructed.
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